Our Mission

The Mission of the Institute is to provide an independent forum for those who dare to read, think, speak, and write in order to advance the professional, literary, and scientific understanding of sea power and other issues critical to national defense.

Samuel Eliot Morison's acclaimed multivolume The History of United States Naval Operations in World War II are being published by the Naval Institute Press with new introductions by noted military historians. The series, hailed for its accuracy, narrative pace, and detail, provides a complete naval record of the war. The publication of all fourteen volumes will be completed by March, 2012.

The eleventh recounts the U.S. Navy's role in the invasion of Normandy—the largest and most complicated military operation ever undertaken. Involving more than a million American soldiers, 124,000 sailors, and 427,000 aviators, Operation Neptune-Overlord encompassed five major landings on the coast of Normandy. As Morison shows, the fire curtain provided by the powerful guns of the navy proved to be one of the most valuable trump cards of the Anglo-United States invasion armies.